Royals ineptitude

When I last wrote the Royals were 20-20. They were 3-10 and not playing well. Well that stretch has become Royals size. They are a bad, bad baseball outfit. I'd love to add the words "right now" to the previous sentence but it doesn't belong. The team is full of borderline players. They have a manager that makes baffling decisions. They have a GM that signed Jose Guillen AND Frenchy. They have two golden boys named Hosmer and Moose. The gold is actually pyrite. Royals fandom is the same thing. I have great memories of baseball in general, and Royals baseball specifically. I will always have those memories. I have to move on from this team, though. I watch a good amount of baseball and this team is bad. They don't play the right way. They are fundamentally unsound. They can't execute the most basic of plays. They are undisciplined at the plate and in the field. I'm not an expert but I can see that this team needs new leadership. Ned is not the man to manage this group. They need someone that will actually give them shit for not getting the job done. You don't need to spank them Ned, you prick, but you do need to pretend you care. You let your guys get run while you sit there thinking about hunting. I hope the Royals will can Ned, Moore, and the Glasses. I hope they do, but I can't care anymore. I've wasted too many seasons wishing and making excuses for this team. They are bad. They are a laughing stock. It wasn't always that way. It will stay that way, though. Stupid salary decisions have doomed this team. Moore and his process need to go. I guarantee you we all would lose our jobs if we performed so poorly. I used to deliver newspapers. We didn't have ESPN and the internet. I used to read the box scores every summer morning. It's much easier to be a fan of a team that wins 90 plus games. It's those mornings and the feeling I had when the interim hitting coach slammed Gossage's pitch into the upper deck and the witch finally died. I'll remember the elation of watching the game pictured here. I also knew the Royals would win the next game. Funny every time they lose a game now I'm afraid they will end up in a 5-25 stretch. If you are a Royals fan, I wish you well. I will always be proud to say I was a Royals fan. I'm just too proud to continue being a fan of this team.

At the Quarter Pole

The Royals will reach the 40 game mark today in Oakland. They will be at least 500 after today's game. A 500 record will indicate either a very consistent team or one that is up and down. This unit seems to be the latter. They were 17-10 at the high point. I'm pretty sure that will prove to be the high point. I'm not even going to guess how low this crew can go. Positives: Shields has been very good. Santana has been good. Guthrie has been good. The three solid starters have proven to be just that. Gordon is an excellent major league left fielder. He hits for a high average and he is leading the team in RBI's and just about every offensive category. Butler hasn't been hitting at the same consistent level we are used to, but he had a great series in Houston to raise his RBI total. He is on a great pace. Alex and Gordon are good. Cain has been pretty good. Dyson was even hitting well before he thought he was spider man. I'm not a fan of Dyson at all, but he has improved to the point that I hope he permanently displaces Frenchy. Holland has been up and down but I still like him as the closer. Negatives: The corners. Moose is awful beyond description. Hosmer is just as bad, if not worse, than last year. Frenchy is the same shitty hitter he has always been. Herrera can't keep the ball in the park. Perez took that contract extension and ate a good deal of it. He is over weight and playing slow. The team just lost consecutive games by 2-1 scores. The offense is going to guarantee that they will end up with at least 90 loses. They are awful and they need to improve. What needs to be done? Yost has stated that he is going to be patient with Moose. Wow, really? He is hitting in the 170's. He is making errors. Yeah, I can see that the only thing needed is patience. There may not be a third baseman tree but god damn, Ned. Omaha is there for a reason. I don't want to hear that Moose has proven all he needs to at AAA. Bull! I don't think he could hit a little league pitcher at this point. Send him down. Send him down, now. He has already stated that he is confident. Good. That means you can confidently find your swing in Omaha and then come back and contribute. Right now he is a gaping hole in the line up. Why do Moose and Hosmer get handed everything? Hosmer is terrible. He can't pull the ball. It's more than a slump. Maybe he needs to go to the Dr. He and Bubba can exchange stories while they wait to SEE what the hell is wrong with their eyes. Hosmer would benefit from a trip to Omaha as well. You may ask who will play first and third? It doesn't matter. Tejada would hit better than 170 at third. Billy isn't that huge a drop off at first. Those kids need to get right. This team can't be contending for anything but draft position if the infield has gaping holes at both corners. Frenchy should be gone. Lough is up while Dyson heals. They should get real comfortable with a platoon in right field. That contract by DM was criminally bad. You would think a 500 record at the quarter mark would leave me with an overall positive outlook. Well, I don't have a positive outlook. The team is held together with chewing gum and duct tape. The starters have been solid. The hitting is atrocious. Gaping holes at spots that MUST generate runs is going to doom this team to 90 plus losses. I hope the Royals send Moose or Hosmer down. They are killing this team. A league average hitter at those two spots and the Royals outlook would be so much better. Stop handing them everything. They haven't earned anything at the MLB level. Let them be AAA all-stars. 170 and 230 from first base and third base. Yeah that's the ticket. I, unlike Ned, don't have patience for such things. I'll check in periodically. I'm sure I'll post when the double digit losing streak occurs. I'll post at the 80 game mark. I doubt this team will have 35 wins at that point. It has been a good first quarter. Not too sure the Royals are going to pass the final exam, however.

12 Games in to 13

The Royals won in walk off fashion today against the Blue Jays. They now stand 7-5. Today was another well pitched game by the starter. Santana has gone 16 innings inT two starts at the K. Shields went 9, gave up 2 hits and lost 3-2. Big Game James is getting a feeling what Broken Collar Bone Zack felt in KC. Overall the first dozen games have indicated that the rotation is much better eating innings than they have been. I'm happy to see Davis come back and pitch well. The only qualms I have with the pitching is Holland/Herrera. It seems like it might be a good problem to have. Holland seems to be a slow starter. He sure has been that. Then he becomes lights out. Right now Herrera is lights out. He has nasty, nasty stuff. On the surface Herrera should be the starter. The back end is solid ,even if Holland has been shaky. I won't address Luke because this is my blog and I can't stand the fact that he is on the team. The back end of the bull pen is fine. Holland regains form, and they will be lights out all season. The pitching has been good. Now for the vaunted line up. Yeah right. Moose and Hosmer. That's all you really have to know. They are finding their level and its the 230-240 level with no power that we saw last year. Moose looks like a 5 year old in little league at the plate. Over matched and lunging and just off balance. Hosmer he is Bob Hamelin. One good year and that's all she wrote. Those two have been as bad as I feared they would be. Toss Frenchy in to the equation and what I saw before the season is taking shape. The line up is bad. They can't hit for power. They are dead last in home runs. I know they have scored a bit, but I still like the power. They have lost too many close games already. They need to find the power strokes. The team should be better because the starters are, simply, better than they have been. They go deep into games. They keep the games close. The bull pen gets to have roles. That's awesome. The fact that the offense is struggling doesn't surprise me. The Moose and Hosmer duo look good in commercials playing with little league kids. They look awful when the lights come on. Those two, Perez, and Billy have to pick up the pace. Billy has driven in runs, but his average is down. The team looks better. They have Atlanta next. The Braves have been scorching. Good test. Wake up the bats, guys. Don't waste these great pitching performances. 11 important games coming up. Have to check back after. Does any Royals fan exhale when they break a losing streak? No double digit losing streaks please!

5 Games into 2013

After a productive/successful spring the Royals are now 5 games into their 2013 campaign. The "Rotation" has had one revolution. Santana was killed by the long ball, Davis was very hittable. Guthrie was very good. Shields was very good. Mendoza was very good. When you have 3 out of 5 very good performances from your starters that is a nice start to the season. The 2-3 record is what it is. I hope it isn't the route the season will take. They play 162 so hopefully I won't have to see a game like the one I saw tonight. Awful. I tuned in right as Frenchy hit a double to lead off an inning. He was promptly doubled in by Tejada. Miguel went to right field in a very nice display of fundamental baseball. Tejada was sacrificed to third. I thought I was watching a different team. Whenever Frenchy gets a hit I'm surprised, but back to back fundamentally sound baseball plays really surprised me. 3-1, Getz to bat for Mendoza. Awesome. First pitch, Miguel gets picked off third base. Seriously. It was then I knew I was watching a team that hasn't been good for decades. The pitchers were great all night. Mendoza, Crow, and Herrera were great. Then the closer comes on. He walks three in a row. Strikes out two. Then he loses the game with a three run double. Yes, all three shitty walks came in to score. Holland blew it. Plain and simple. Game 5 last year was similar. Gravy drinking Broxton blows a lead with a walk. The Royals go on to lose that game and 11 more on their way to a 3-14 start. The pitching has been good. The pen had been great until tonight. Well, Whoreshaver still sucks, but the rest of the pen had been good. The hitting will come around. I'm not sure this team is any better than the other 2000's teams. That loss tonight was an embarrassment. Hopefully Shields will shut the Phillies down and they can venture home 3-3. I'm too old to worry about the Royals. I cried with Patek. I felt awful for Willie Wilson in 80. I was so happy in 85. I'm sick and tired of the same old bullshit. The team needs to win me back. Three consecutive walks in a 3-1 game isn't the way to do that. Herrera will end up the closer. That or he will end up in a big market. His stuff is crazy. Here's to hoping this awful game will be a funny memory at the end of a 500 or better season. Do all Royals fans hold their breath and think that every loss is the start of an epic losing streak? I do. Go Royals, go home 3-3!

Spring has sprung!

The Royals are off to a great start this spring. They have won most of their games. Many will say that the games don't count, they don't matter. Wrong! They don't count, I'll grant you that. They do matter, though. You can't tell me that if the record was reversed in these meaningless games you wouldn't be concerned. The games matter. The Royals have pitched well, hit well, and fielded well. That equals a nice record. The team is finding itself. I still have questions about the 4 corners, CF, and second base. Moose has been excellent. Lough has given that doofus Frenchy a nice complement. Cain/Dyson haven't done much. Getz and Johnny G are in a splendid little battle at second. Hosmer was doing fine. Then the damn WBC came calling. Now he is waving at every pitch, embarrassing himself against lefties and against all breaking pitches. Too bad. The kid was doing better in Surprise. He was according to numbers, anyway. I watched him leave men on base at a ridiculous pace and make an error in the field with his olay bullshit. He may be pressing, but he looked just like the lost kid we all watched last year. Disheartening to say the least. The Royals won't win if Eric doesn't produce. It really is that simple. A totally over matched kid at first base isn't a good thing. The team has been very entertaining to watch, or at least follow this spring. I have one huge complaint. This developed today, and it pissed me off. Luke has been moved to the bull pen. You know, the part of the team that is supposed to be strength. Now we have the Luke pollution in the pen. His soft headed self should have been non-tendered. Who is he going to displace out in pen? Give me a break with this clown. Spring is the time of optimism. I'm hoping the heat in Arizona or Florida will cause a team to want to trade for the former number one overall draft pick. The old adage of trade him for a six pack might not hold up. Maybe trade him for a 40! An open one, that is warm. I'd take that right now. Mendoza is much better at this point. He should be a Royal. Luke should be a Padre. Spring has sprung. The Royals are playing well. Hosmer is pressing at the WBC. The position battles are fun to watch because everyone seems to be playing well. I hope the WBC ends on a Hosmer slam in the bottom of the 9th. I really just want it over so he can get back to concentrating on up the middle on good pitches. Go Royals. We are enjoying the spring ride.

Play (Spring) Ball!

The Royals kicked off the 2013 spring season today. Here we go Royals fans. The optimists among us look to this day as the day the streak of non-playoff seasons ends. Maybe! I have concerns. The Moose, Hosmer, Frenchy,Cain, Second base concerns. Cain is ALREADY hurt. Come on! You can't complain about injuries. Cain has to be good for the team to be successful. He already is missing batting practice. Good thing I'm still an optimist. Dyson in center? Well, maybe next year the streak will end! Center field is just one question. Frenchy in right field is scary. He was beyond bad last season. He is back because of the most ridiculous contract. That's two thirds of the outfield. Alex will be Alex. That will help. Moose is going to be the third baseman. Hoz is going to be the first baseman. 232 and 242. Wow. Just because they have a full year experience doesn't mean they are ready. They were completely awful last year. They are young and they must improve. Not much to base it on, but I would love to see 282-292 next year at this time. Moose had 20 homers. That is a good thing. Hoz was just so pathetic last year. I refuse to look at stolen bases as an important stat for him. He needs to get his stroke back. George Brett explained his struggles away in an interview. The guy didn't hit in bad luck ALL year. Come on, George. He was undisciplined at the plate. He was undisciplined in the field. I hate the olay bullshit he does. He has potential, but he scares me. If he continues like he did last year this team isn't very good. Think about it. Cain is hurt. Frenchy sucks. Moose is below average. Hoz is below Moose. That is a nightmare. The team won't win 60 games unless these guys produce. Cain needs to be 280/15/70 with great defense. Moose needs to be 282/22/78. Hoz needs to achieve 292/18/83. Frenchy needs to be on another team. Good guy, I'm sure. Not the right fielder on a contending team. I'd rather see Lough out there. Spring will determine the starter at second. I predict Getz will win the job over Johnny G. Chris will get hurt and Elliot Johnson will be the every day starting second baseman. Not a good prediction. I wanted Johnny G to be awesome. He isn't. Getz can steal bases, but he isn't a complete hitter. Johnson seems like a complement to Falu in the utility role. Not that my concerns are out there, lets see what I believe are locks in the lineup. Butler. He will hit 300/30/110. He is good. Alex is Alex. That is more than good enough for left field. Escobar will hit 295/15/65. Alcides will be an All Star. He is becoming a complete shortstop. Hard to imagine many better in the AL. Perez is going to be the best catcher in baseball soon. Love the character of Sal and Alcides. They will both be all stars multiple times. Maybe this year will be the first for both. The whole offense can't be those 4 guys. Three of guys that are question marks have to meet or exceed the predictions on this page. If that happens the team has a shot at 500. I won't mention the pitching staff because I will do that next Friday! The Royals and Rangers played to a tie today. A tie, really? There's no tying in baseball!!!!

12/21/12

Looks like the Mayans were just tired and out of space. The world goes on. Wounds from Newtown will never fully heal but we press on. The carnage must stop. The Royals have coasted through the past week. I'd imagine they will be in coast mode for the majority of the off season. I hope they were at least in contact with the Angels about Morales. Luke for Kendrys would have been fine by me. I say that because I watched Hosmer closely last year and I didn't like what I saw. The kid was more than just in a slump. He was awful. I really thought he needed the eyes checked. That's harsh, I know, but the kid was awful. Morales is a way better hitter from the left side right now. I know he doesn't have the olay flair Hosmer does at first base, but hitting the ball is not a problem for him. I'm down on Hosmer and afraid that between him, Moose and Frenchy this upcoming season will look familiar. A combined 225 average from 3 corner positions isn't going to lead anywhere but 90 losses. Cy Young and all the great pitchers of the past need at least some support. I'd like to see the Royals be semi aggressive in the secondary market. They need to at least explore improvements in the line up. I really like Falu and Abreu for the utility role. I think Falu offers more D flexibility but Abreu seems to have a nose for the RBI. Wouldn't that be a nice nose to have in the lineup? Excitement for the new, improved rotation is understandable. I count myself in that group. I just can't get overly excited about a team with gaping holes in the lineup. Hosmer CANNOT start as slowly as he did last year. He was awful. I will keep saying that so someone, anyone, will take what the kid put on film as warning that the kid is big time overrated. I fell for the his rookie season. I thought they finally had that guy. By June of last year I wondered how long a slump could last. By September last year I saw a fish out of water. Hosmer was over matched by all lefties and he was AWFUL. He bounced back in the minors after eye surgery and did what he did. How do you account for last year? I don't know the answer but we will know by May. If he isn't hitting his weight then, he should be sent down to find it. The kid glove routine with him didn't work. I sincerely hope the kid can put together a great season and prove me wrong. Moose can't hit 242. He was totally inconsistent as well. I guess we are supposed to over look just how lacking these two were at cornerstone positions because they have POTENTIAL. They are potentially the demise of the 13 season. First, second, and third have to improve off the charts for the team to be 500. I didn't forget right field I just really, really cannot stand the player that occupies that spot. Perez nearly caught him in every power category. Sal didn't make stupid throws to showcase his arm, and allow a ton of base runners to move up. Also, Frenchy may be the worst base runner I have ever seen. Well, outside of Aviles. OK, same theme. Hosmer needs to be on a short leash. 180 average in May? Sit his butt and find someone else. Moose going weeks without an RBI. Frenchy being Frenchy. You have your double digit losing streak and Ned is gone. These positions are scary to me and I'm an optimist. I wish everyone a very happy holiday season. My job affords me two weeks vacation this time of year. I will take that from this little blog, too. If the Royals trade for Bud Norris or if they dump the Hochevar trash I'll be back in a Las Vegas minute.